Early Jewish and Greek tradition normally assumes that disciples are responsible for acquiring their own teachers of the law (m. 'Abot 1:6, 16; ARN 3, 8A; Socrates Ep. 4). The more radical teachers who, like Jesus, sometimes even rejected prospective disciples (see commentary on Mt 19:21-22) probably considered the disciple's responsibility so weighty that it would be dishonorable for the teacher to seek out the disciple.

Jesus' seeking out disciples himself may thus represent a serious breach of custom (Malina 1981:78; though compare Jer 1:4-10), "coming down to their level" socially. This would be like itinerant preachers going out to the unchurched instead of expecting them to visit our churches and appreciate our well-prepared sermons. Probably Jesus is choosing as his model the prophetic way of choosing one's successor found in 1 Kings 19:19-21 (see also Lk 9:61-62).